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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Elliot Ball & Tim Hanlon

Dartmoor wildfires rage through the night as 60 firefighters battle huge blaze

A huge blaze is ripping through through the Dartmoor hillside with dramatic footage showing flames lighting up the night sky.

The wildfires across Dartmoor have now been called a "major incident" by emergency services as one fire front now stands at 750 metres with 12 fire engines and 60 crew battling the flames.

Footage of the fire near Tungsten West Mine in Hemerdon shows the extent of the blaze and the task of extinguishing it, with an eye witness saying it appeared to be growing, reported PlymouthLive.

Another person told the news outlet that they are worried for the deer and animals on the moors.

At a separate blaze near Mary Tavy firefighters have been joined by police and a mountain rescue team with a command centre set up on Brentor Road due to the severity of the incident.

There are 60 firefighters who are tackling the blaze (Matt Gilley/PlymouthLive))

Fire crews were alerted to reports of a fire at 4.15pm and are now currently attempting to contain the fire by using fire beaters and wild fire vehicles.

The aim is to prevent the fire from spreading past the A386.

A spokesperson for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue said: "We have 12 fire appliances there at the moment plus special appliances. There's a fire front of about 750 metres.

"Firefighters are using fire beaters and wild fire vehicles to prevent it spreading and crossing the A386. The A386 is closed in that area.

The fires have been declared a "major incident" (Matt Gilley/PlymouthLive))

"There are a number of controlled fires burns going up on Dartmoor but this one has been going since about 4.15pm initially.

"They've declared a major incident now."

Devon County Council has told drivers to find alternative routes and to expect delays in the area.

A council spokesperson tweeted: "The police have requested a full road closure with diversions on the A386 north of Mary Tavy due to a gorse fire.

"Expect delays and find an alternative route where possible."

Police reportedly said the blaze near the A386 resulted from a controlled fire that had got out of hand (Matt Gilley/PlymouthLive))

Meanwhile, motorists have reported seeing a "very dangerous" fire that had begun to spread across the road.

A police officer reportedly said the blaze near the A386 resulted from a controlled fire which had got out of hand.

APS Symonds, based at Tavistock Police Station, said the moors fire was started by swaling where overgrown vegetation is burnt to prevent it being a fire hazard - but it had got out of control.

Police were worried that the wind would aggravate the fire but the fire is now under control.

APS Symonds said: "We've had a call out this afternoon to a fire up on the moors in close proximity to the A386, a result of swaling which has gone out of control. Obviously fire has been in attendance and they've asked us to come down and assist.

The fires are currently under control said police (Matt Gilley/PlymouthLive))

"There's been some concerns with the wind and the direction of the wind. There's a concern it could become out of control, thankfully however it is fully in control - fire are dealing with it.

"We have asked for assistance from some of our other partner agencies should we need it which is no longer needed at this stage. We work quite closely with search and rescue for a number of different reasons.

"One of those is if we are having to think about the possibilities of mass evacuation from nearby areas if there is a risk to the public. Then we will quite often ask them to come and assist us in doing that as obviously our police numbers are quite limited.

"Thankfully on this occasion they are not going to be needed."

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